They Call Me Gumball: Sweet Dreams
by Wani-Ramirez
Summary: A prologue of a stunning dark chiller about the assassination of the entire Gumball and Carrie family. Although the end may seem iminent, one lucky ghost child may be the key to save the family, world and time itself.


It was nearly dusk at the quiet city of Elmore as menacing thunderclouds approach the area like a prowling great white shark. All seemed normal as the children went back to their homes and the parents came home from a long day of work, ready to crash into their beds and comfort their families. But for the residence of the Wattersons, their night will ahve become their last...

"Gumball? Are you quite finished?" yelled out Carrie. She and her husband Gumball were suppose to put the children to sleep.

"Not yet! Just gotta put the disc in and I'll be upstairs before you know it, hon." said Gumball. He was putting away a CD-Rom he had stored from a robot's body.

The robot resembled Gumball with a shiny coat of cobalt and jet-black titanium. Despite its menacing look, it was built by its humble creator as a service android for the family.

Gumball finally leaves the room with a few notes and turns the light switch off, turning the basement into a pitch-black darkness. Little did he know was that he forgot to turn the robot off...

"Alright, Carrie, I'm here. Did I miss anything?" asked Gumball. Carrie had just put the daughters of the family(Marmalade, Sindy, Belle, and Ranae) in their pajamas, ready for bed. "Did everything go alright downstairs, Daddy?" asked Marmalade. "Yup, Daddy took care of everything..." said Gumball in a prideful mood.

Meanwhile in the basement, the eyes of the robot start to glow...

"... and they lived happily ever after!" said Carrie as she closed the book "Daisy the Donkey Meets a Ghost!" All the young ghosts were sound asleep and the room was filled with the sound of gentle snoring. Carrie gave a relieving sigh and asked Gumball, "Honey, you ready for the boys?" "I'll ge give them a story that'll knock their socks off, sweets!" said Gumball. He leaves the room, blowing a kiss as he headed for the other childrens' room.

-

Carrie, however spots that one of the children was still awake! "Are you fine, my little ghoul?" asked Carrie in a motherly nature as she pets the cranium of her youngest daughter, Marmalade. "I can't sleep, Mommy. The lightning scares me..." replied Marmalade. "Oh, honey, your father was afraid of lightning as well." said Carrie. "Would it be better if I sang you a lullaby, sweetie?" asked Carrie. Marmalade nodded with tears forming in her eyes.

Carrie thought for a moment and finally thought of a song she remembered when she was little herself...  
"Our world is under a spell  
Even the excitement of our love is sealed in our tears  
Boy, let's go together to find that charm,  
To the land of where forbidden dreams may come true.

Alone, tomorrow, let's secretly meet  
Up on the hill where small birds are buried  
Some day, when I hold your hand in the cold morning mist  
And the seal of the shining road will be broken  
Forever

I didn't wish to get heartbroken so I hid my feelings  
I was happy, for you gave me that smile.  
Boy, give me courage  
To make everything that happened zero.

Let's kiss quietly in secret  
Like a old picture book we're unable to read  
When the wind blows in the morning dew  
The shining road will strech on forever  
Always

Callin' you  
Calling out your name in a sad night  
Callin' you  
That will be the key to break the enchantment of the world

Alone, tomorrow, let's secretly meet  
On the hill where we can the future of everyone's journeys  
Some day, when I walk with you in the cold morning mist  
The shining road will strech on forever  
Always...

Eventually, Marmalade was asleep as Carrie finished her lovely song and tucked her calmy with her blanket. She slowly turned the lights off as rain begins to tap onto the window, signifying that it's raining outside. She gave one last look at her children and quietly says "Sweet dreams..." The door closes and the young ghosts slumber off into their dreams, sound asleep...

Downstairs in the basement, the door slowly creaks open as a pair of hideous green glowing eyes peek from the shadows...

-

"... and finally, he gets runs off in the sunset, awaiting his next adventure!" said Gumball as he concludes reading an exerpt from the novel "Rye in the Catcher." Immediately the rest of the Watterson children(Gumdrop, Carine, Marissa and Scrapper) slept faster than a blink of an eye. "Works every time!" said Gumball with a smug look on his face. Carrie calmly enters the room and says "Come on, baby, we need to crash too." "Alright, hon.." says Gumball. The two share a warm kiss and exit the room.

Elsewhere, the escaped robot slowly marches up the basement stairs like a serial killer and finally makes it to the top. It scans the area and smirks "No intruders in sight." It slowly prowls the kitchen as it approaches the stairs to the second floor of the house.

In the parents' room, Gumball puts his boxers on and walks to his bedside. Carrie asks "How was the robot?" "Gumbot has a name, you know, Carrie.." said Gumball. "Right... so tomorrow is a special day for a special someone." Carrie said with excited jitters. "I didn't forget Marms' birthday either, honey! I'll make sure Gumbot bakes her the most delicious cake money can buy!" said Gumball in a happy banter. "Well, I'm gld you did this, for the family." said Carrie. "Honey, when it comes to MY family, my suprises are to die for!" said Gumball.

Carrie shuts the lamp off as she continues talking to her husband. "Gummypuss, are you sure you're not taking this TOO much?" asked Carrie. "What? Gumbot's a miracle, Carrie! He can save millions of lives! Many families will be able to afford their own "Gumbot" and the name "Watterson" will mean something again!" said Gumball.

Before he can continue, Gumbot appears from out of nowhere and grabs Carrie by the throat. "Intruder alert!" yelled Gumbot. "Holy shit! Gumbot! Stand down!" yelled Gumball. Suddenly the robot turns to its creator and punches him, square in the face. Gumball flies off the bed and crashes into the wall. Gumbot drops Carrie and lunges at his helpless master.

Gumball pounces right on time to avoid Gumbot's deadly headbutt. The ruckus was loud enough to wake the children from their beds.

"What the hell was that?!" yelled Gumdrop. "Sounded like it came from Mom and Dad's room!" said Scrapper. "Let's check it out!" said Marissa. "Ugh, fine..." said Carine. The kids jump out of their beds and look out the hallway from their bedroom door. They spot the ghost sisters, peeking out as well.

-

As the children meet up, Sindy asks "What was that?!" "Sounded dangerous!" replied Belle. "I dunno, but we better check on Ma and Pop!" said Gumdrop. They finally went to the door of their parents' room and began to knock. "Mom? Dad? What's going on?" asked Gumdrop nervously. "Maybe their having their "private" moment." said Carine with a smug look on her face. "Ewww..." replied Belle and Sindy with disgust.

Before they knocked again, the door explodes as Carrie bursts through it and hits the wall. The eyes of the children widen as they gasp in terror at the sight of Gumbot. "Intruders!" barked Gumbot as it prepares its arm cannon. The children run in all directions as Gumbot's targeting sensor scrambles in difficulty. It switches to predator mode as it seeks down the helpless children.

Lying in pain, Gumball is having trouble staying conscious and keeping away from blacking out. "Ugh... Carrie?" says Gumball. He slowly picks himself up as he hears blood-curdling screams and the sound of gunshots. He knew that his own creation was killing his children.  
"What on earth have I done?" he thought in his mind. Looking back in his past, he knew that Gumbot was plagued with bugs and glitches that vary from short-circuiting at pure random or rebel against an order.

Suddenly, he had enough strength to dress up and search for the others. As he walks out the big hole in the wall that was once the door, he finds Carrie lying unconscious on the floor. "Carrie, are you-" said Gumball as he heard more gunshots. Suddenly, tears burst from his eyes as his wife doesn't respond. "No, no... no! GOD DAMMIT, CARRIE! Wake up!" yelled Gumball with hopelessness in his sad eyes.

He slowly sets her down and jogs downstairs, shocked at the site of the massacre that he heard from upstairs. All his children lay dead as he spots Gumbot crashing through the kitchen window, chasing after Gumdrop. Gumball immediately gives chase to rescue his eldest son from the mechanical menace.

-

Meanwhile, in the girls' bedroom, Marmalade slowly wakes up and hears loud noise. "Huh?" she said as she flew down the hallway. She spots her dying mother and screams in terror. "Momma? Momma?! MOMMA!" screamed Marms as she approaches her mother. "Mommy... Mommy?" said Marmalade. Within an instant, tears burst from her eyes as she cries uncontrollably over the carcass of her dead mother. All of a sudden, she heard noise outside and saw her dad and brother fighting Gumdrop.

"Oof!" grunts Gumdrop as Gumbot swipes with a backhand punch. "Leave him alone!" roared Gumball as he lunges at the cobalt menace. Gumdrop dodges his creator's pounce and skids toward him with a devastating blow to Gumball's back. "Argh!" says Gumball as he crashes on the rain soaked ground. Covered in mud, he jumps at his creation when suddenly Gumdrop fires a laser at his stomach, sending him backwards to the ground.

"You killed my family... you ruined my life and you destroyed my reputation! And my house... Most of all, YOU KILLED MY WIFE" groaned Gumball with a heart filled with anger and regret. He unleashes his emotions and yells out "I NEVER SHOULD HAVE BUILT YOU!"

The two dopplegangers clash head on as Gumbot fatally shoots Gumball in the face, mercilessly killing him. Before his dead father hits the ground, Gumdrop charges from out of nowhere and hangs on Gumbot's head. He continues to claw and scratch him without remorse as he growls "Rargh!" Gumbot grabs a hold of him and begins to squeeze the life out of him. As much as he can take, Gumdrop runs out of breath and finally gives up the ghost.

-

Gumbot slams Gumdrop's dead body to the wet earth as it scans the scene of the massacre. "Targets eliminated." says Gumdrop with its monotone robot voice. Before it can move, Marmalade swings at him and faceplants him to the muddy ground. "MONSTER!" yells Marmalade with a grieven look on her face. Gumbot recovers and sets his sights on Marmalade.

"Eeek!" screams Marms as she flies away to the nearby woods. Gumbot brings forth rocket boosters and gives chase at Marmalade. Flying for her life, Marmalade dodges tree after tree as the deadly cyborg races after her. Panting uncontrollably, she picks up a rock and throws at Gumbot. The boulder disorients Gumbot as it crashes to a nearby tree. Given the amount of time, Marmalade searches in a panic for shelter.

"Do not resist. Prepare for termination." says Gumbot when he finally loses sight of Marmalade. He floats in place and scans the area for its target. After a minute, it concludes its mission and chants "Target eliminated." Then Gumbot flies in the opposite direction and disappears in the forest, never to be seen again.

Unbeknowest to the robot, Marmalade lay hidden in a mossy ditch near a creek. She slowly peeks from the brush and finally lies down in confusion. "Mommy... daddy... brothers... sisters... *sniff*... GONE." murmurs Marmalade in silence. She cries for minutes on end, realizing that her family was gone forever. Suddenly, she remembers something...

"WAIT! Mom's lullaby! She said that sometimes makes wishes come true..." says Marmalade. Soon enough, she sings the entire lullaby in peace and sure enough, a sign appears. Out of nowhere, a strange portal emerges before Marmalade as a godly voice speaks.

"Child, where is your mother?" asked the demeaning voice. "She's... she's gone. I'm all alone. Can you help me, mister?" said Marmalade with hope in her eyes. "Child, I ask you... who taught you the secret ritual?" asked the strange voice. "Mother.." said Marmalade as she starts to weep once more.

The voice changes to a softer tone and says "Ohhh... I see. I see! Child, your mother... She'll be remembered. I promise you... but still. It is no longer safe where you are. Your world is destined to fall, I'm afraid." says the mysterious voice. "Then what should we do, mister?" asked Marmalade as she wipes away a teardrop from her cheek. "I believe the best course of action is to prevent the disaster and stop this from happening!" says the voice in a determined mood.

"But how can we? The robot will kill everyone and... I don't know where to go!" says Marmalade as she starts crying again. "Come now, my dear, we have much to do!" said the voice. "I will guide you on a mission and hopefully bring your family back!" offered the gentle voice. Marmalade weeps in confusion and finally agrees, having no choice after her traumatic encounter. "OK, mister... will Mommy and Daddy come back?" asked Marms with hope in her eyes.

"My dear, with hope, miracles can happen!" said the voice. "Then... *sniff* let's do it!" says Marmalade as she enters the portal. "Good, now... we got a world to save!" said the voice. As Marmalade enters the portal, it disappears into a flash of light.

TO BE CONTINUED  
-


End file.
